The Spirits of Father's Day. Ten Bottles To Buy Dad.

by David Kiley (RSS feed)
Jun 17th 2010 at 11:00AM

With Father's Day sneaking up on June 20, it is never too late to get Dad a gift he will appreciate if he keeps a bar and the better liquor retailers are open.

Choosing ten bottles as choices or Father's Day is not easy. But I apply a few criteria for gift giving suggestions.

1. Don't just get Dad a bottle of what he always drinks. If he drinks Wild Turkey week-to-week, think about a Small-batch bourbon that gets opened for special occasions, like when you surprise him with a Sunday afternoon visit he didn't expect.

2. Stay within his wheelhouse. If he drinks whisky 80% of the time, and hasn't made a Rum drink in 20 years, don't spend your money on an expensive Rum just because you like the bottle or the box it comes in.

3. Don't go for Vodka. Even if he drinks Vodka 90% of the time, I have yet to find the bottle of vodka I thought was worthy to give as a gift. It's colorless with barely a distinguishable taste. That doesn't say, "I love you Dad," in my book.

4. Think about introducing him to a new expression that is related to his taste. If he likes Islay (peaty) single-malt whiskies, buy one you don't see on his shelf that is more than he would spend on himself.

5. If he really is focused on one brand, like Glenmorangie Scotch, Jose Cuervo Tequila or Jack Daniels, you can't go wrong by buying him one of those distillery's premium or limited edition expressions. If he buys 12-year old Glenmorangie for himself, for example, he should love it if you buy him the 18-year old or one of the other premium or super-premium expressions.

If you are still stymied, and want an extra degree of novelty, go to www.johnniewalker.com, and take the Father's Day quiz, which asks the gift-giver to match the characteristics of their father to the right expression of JW: Red, Blue, Green, Gold or Black. I took the quiz for myself, and found that the best match for me is Johnnie Walker Gold.

Here are ten bottles I eagerly recommend for Dad, covering a few different categories: whisky, bourbon, rye, Port, Tequila and an after-dinner digestif.

Gallery: Ten Great Pours For Father's Day

Tags: alcohol, bourbon, fathers Day bourbon, Fathers Day Gift Guide, Fathers Day Spirits, Fathers Day Tequila, Fathers Day whisky, liquor, port, rye, tequila, whisky

Filed under: Spirits

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Harry Jul 12th 2010 10:06AM

Hi David,

I am currently working for an advertising group called slice and we are working on promoting the new range of southern comfort drinks for summer 2010

on reading your blog on the 10 best spirits for fathers day i thought about your excellent choices and if you wouldnt mind i would like to take your details for future blogs and promoting different alcoholic bevarages.